Product launches take time, money, and resources to perfect, so, as the CMO, you are under pressure to ensure you use all three wisely. That requires a better solution to make sure the proof of concept is successful. First, though, let’s look at why so many fail.

Why Such Failure?

One of the major reasons a new product fails is a lack of preparation. This means a lack of adequate market research that illustrates whether the market and target audiences really need or want the product idea.

However, with the high cost of product development, it would make sense to slow down the process to ensure something their audiences really want. One Forbes article noted just how expensive new product development has become: “The cost to bring a new product to market (R&D/Number of New Product Pacesetter Products) for the period of 1997-2010 was $15 million. Today, the R&D investment to bring a new product to market is roughly 4X the cost of five years ago.”

Going Beyond A Typical Product Development Strategy For Launch Success

To counteract these odds of success, you can take a new approach to their product development strategies. Instead of following a traditional product development and launch strategy, incorporate new preparation methods and tools to ensure the product is marketable for as many in their audience as possible.

Here are three such tactics to incorporate into your strategy:

1. Determine Your Target Demographic For Customer Validation

Customers validate great ideas because they make the final purchase. The goal is to determine your main demographic and establish market viability with your target audience. To achieve this, you can leverage a partner like iResearch. This market intelligence technology firm delivers intuitive online tools for insight-driven decision-making.

Using market research is crucial to a product’s success because the ultimate arbiter of your product’s worth is your customer. If your product doesn’t solve a real problem for prospective customers, they’re not going to buy it. Before writing a single line of code, have a conversation with your target customers. Use a market insights platform like iResearch to learn what problem they’re experiencing, how badly they want to solve it, and what their ideal solution might look like. iResearch’s online focus groups make it easy and affordable to reach any demographic anywhere in the world.

2. Think Outside The Box On Product Design

Often, companies use the same type of product materials; the materials are tried-and-true, justifying an easier route rather than taking the time to determine whether there’s any type of new material that could improve the product and the response it gets. For example, thermoplastics and glass are typical product materials, but they aren’t the only options.

PopFoam is an injection molded EVA foam that can be a game changer in product development. The company leads the injection molded EVA closed-cell foam process, specializing in complex geometrics. PopFoam is focused on working with designers to develop innovative, high-quality products. The material is lightweight, virtually indestructible, and waterproof to work in a wide range of consumer, business, and industrial product applications.

3. Bring Customers In Early Or Involve Customers In Your Product Launch

There’s a common misconception that the customer’s input doesn’t really matter until the product exists. Websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo have proven that wrong, and numerous companies, including SkyBell, have noted that customer input provides some very critical improvements in the features and functionality of their products.

In fact, SkyBell co-founder Andrew Thomas believes the company would not have been as successful with its Wi-Fi doorbell if it hadn’t been for those contributing to its crowdfunding campaign: “Often, it’s the end user who sees and understands more how they will use the product than the actual developer. The first version of SkyBell and other subsequent product releases included our audience during the earliest development stages.”

Don’t Rush

The best advice is to take the process slowly, thoughtfully, and analytically. Include your audience in the process, use unique materials where applicable, and clearly define your target market. You may have to continually tweak it along the way and even pivot at times. However, it’s all worth it in the end. Hard work, research, and analysis can pay off in a wildly successful product that people can’t get enough of.